Bad Dreams and Mares of the Night
A trickling sound echoed inside of the small cup placed down by a gray hoof, the remains of a milk carton entering the glassware. The Earth Pony, her lavender mane slightly messed, corrected the cap of the liquid's container after she quietly rinsed it out, and disposed of it in the recycling bin located in her family's kitchen. She then swallowed a portion of the milk she'd prepared, looking out a window on the wall. It was the middle of the night, and the stars twinkled beautifully in the sky, even if it was too chilly for Maud to go outside herself. Instead, she stared at the moon contently until her drink was nothing but a rich smell coming from the milk's receptacle, which she set down on the counter, planning to clean it once to sun rose.
Dabbing her neck with some warm water, Maud decided that she was finally drowsy enough to go to sleep, and climbed the staircase leading to the second floor of her family's house. Once at the top, she yawned and turned the sharp corner leading to a hallway, only to be met with a weak light coming from her sisters' room.
Confused, she stuck her head through the door frame. Her little sister Marble Pie was fast asleep, her head resting on a pink pillow. Pinkie Pie, however, was curled in a tight ball under the teal covers of her bed and shivering slightly. Making sure to be quiet, as she didn't want to wake Marble, and possibly even Limestone, who had a separate room from the twins, Maud stepped over to the lump of a pony.
"Pinkie Pie?" Maud whispered, her tone even and flat. "Are you awake?"
The covers shifted, and the pink head of the distraught filly popped out from under them. Her blue eyes were irritated, she'd obviously been crying, and her mouth was twisted with worry. She tucked a strand of pink hair behind her ear before looking up at Maud.
"Pinkie Pie, what's wrong? I thought I saw you asleep when I headed downstairs."
Tears pricked at the filly's eyes when she opened her mouth, Pinkie Pie's dry throat tightening. Unable to speak, she instead sniffed and rubbed her nose. Rivers of yellow traveled down from each nostril and directly to Pinkie's upper lip, her tongue picking up the taste of salt. The hoof that had instinctively crossed the rivers was dotted with stickiness. Maud started to leave, planning to get a tissue, but the urgent murmurer of her sister made Maud stop.
"W-wait don't leave!"
"Please, tell me why you're so upset." Maud said calmly. "I want to help."
"I had a bad dream," mumbled Pinkie Pie. "I don't wanna go back to sleep."
Maud walked over to the side of Pinkie and Marble's bed, putting her hoof on the covers, Pinkie Pie's hindquarters quickly shifting away from Maud's reach. Maud then took off her purple nightshirt, though when she did a small breeze from Pinkie's window chilled her, and gave it to Pinkie Pie as a makeshift hankie. Pinkie blew her nose in it after giving a small thanks before Maud folded it up. She then set it on the floor, ready to be used again if needed. Maud then thought for a moment.
"Sometimes it helps to tell some pony about scary dreams, like a story. It always helped me when I was little, even if I was only talking to myself. Go ahead and try it."
Pinkie Pie's cheeks flushed with red, and she scrunched the covers up to her muzzle, as if it was the barrier between her sister. She glanced down at her hooves, attempting to avoid an answer. Maud began to rub Pinkie's back. Pinkie Pie would open her mouth at times, only for it too snap shut once again. After a while, Pinkie still refused to look up at her, leaving Maud to tilt her chin so that their eyes would meet. She used a free hoof to stroke her mane, encouraging her to speak.
"Pinkie . . ."
"No!"
"Tell me the dream. It will help, I promise."
"I can't."
"Why not?"
Similar events repeat, but Maud made it clear she was looking for a response.
"I . . . forget what the dream was about."
Pinkie Pie flinched, and looked surprised to see that Maud's expression hadn't changed into a more confused or even accusing one. In fact she looked empathetic (as empathetic as Maud could look), even if a bit surprised, but not for the reason Pinkie'd thought.
"Pinkie Pie, I'd never judge you for something like that, I just want you to feel better. It's okay to be scared, even if you don't know why you feel that way. I understand, because I woke up with an icky feeling one time, too." Her voice was bland but clearly driven by love.
Pinkie Pie nodded.
"I'm sorry, Maud."
"Don't be sorry," Maud said, kissing Pinkie Pie on the nose. "Remember, even if it's late, you can always come and get me if you need something."
". . . Um, stay with me until I fall asleep?"
Maud had expected this.
"Okay. Should I read you a story?"
Maud gestured to a small bookshelf in the corner, halfway filled with books, the other half scattered with Pinkie and Marble's favored pieces of rock from the farm. The Pie family didn't buy books often, but had made an exception during Pinkie Pie's first trip to the market. She'd fallen in love with a book of myths and legends, and Maud herself had decided to buy it for her. It sat proudly as the first book on the topmost self.
"No thank you."
"A glass of milk?"
Maud was glad to hear Pinkie Pie deny that option as well, as she'd temporary forgotten that she'd finished it off.
"Not even a song? What do you want then?"
Pinkie Pie smiled, moving to provide Maud with room next to her on the bed.
"I just want you."
